SimBad Android Malware – What is it and How to Prevent it?

New Android Malware SimBad Affects 150 Million Google Play Store Users

Beware, there are dangerous apps hiding on Google Play Store even though it's supposed to be a safe space for Android users. Despite the best efforts of Google, malicious apps have made their way onto the Google Play Store. 

Cybersecurity researchers at HTRI have discovered a sophisticated malware attack that targets Android users worldwide through the Google Play Store.

What’s even more scaring is that there are over 200 infected apps that have been downloaded and installed by a total of around 150 million users, which could have likely exposed the Android users to a new strain of malware named SimBad.

According to reports, the new SimBad malware infects mostly stimulator games available on the Google Play Store and it disguises itself as ads to avoid suspicion.

In-depth research uncovered that the malware which is affecting millions of Google Play Store users is hidden behind a malicious software development kit (SDK) that is used for marketing and other profitability purposes, making it even harder to detect.

Once installed, SimBad can then perform malicious activities that facilitate adware campaigns, phishing attacks, as well as conduct remote downloads or redirect the victims to install other infected apps.

SimBad malware capabilities range from showing ads to open a malicious URL in the web browser including fraudulent and pornography content that will pop-up via the user’s browser.

This type of malware is often harmful and intend to cause damage, disrupt, steal, downloading or installing new versions of malicious apps on user’s phone or in general impose some other harmful action on your data or device.

Once an infected Android app has been installed and being actively used, the SimBad malware can be directed by bad actors to show background ads, generate phishing pages, and redirect users to malicious and deceptive domains.

Also Read: Top 10 Offline Shooting Games for Android [2019 Update]

With each click on pop-up ads, there are high chances that malicious parties are generating revenue via PPC.

Moreover, it could allow cybercriminals to install a remote application from a designated server that can be used to accumulate user’s data such as geographic locations, email addresses, IMEIs, login credentials, etc.

This confidential information later sold to third parties which can lead to serious privacy violations, financial loss or identity theft.

The SimBad malware also comes with the ability to hide an infected app’s icon from the launcher, making it difficult to uninstall the app.

According to cybersecurity researchers at HTRI, the majority of infected applications are simulator games and photo editors. Here is the list of top ten apps that are currently infected with SimBad malware:

• Ambulance Rescue Driving 
• Farming Tractor Real Harvest Simulator
• Snow Heavy Excavator Simulator
• Hoverboard Racing
• Water Surfing Car Stunt
• Fire Truck Emergency Driver
• Heavy Mountain Bus Simulator
• Speed Boat Jet Ski Racing
• Car Parking Challenge
• Real Tractor Farming Simulator 

These malicious apps would run in the background thereby exhausting internet data plans and causing even more financial losses to the victims.

These infected apps with SimBad malware pose a security threat to Android users and need to be uninstalled.

While most of these have already been removed from Google Play Store, but not before the apps were downloaded and installed by millions of users.

To Conclude

If you’re one of the many unfortunate victims who has installed these malware-infected apps from Google Play Store, we suggest you remove the malicious applications as soon as possible before it causes more harm to your smartphone.

At the moment this particular incident where the fraudulent apps infected with malware made it past Google’s scanner and tried to put the privacy of Android smartphone users at stake which definitely raises questions around privacy policies and also whether Google is doing enough to protect Android users from such practices.

Tips to Prevent virus and malware from Infecting Your System: